GUESTMIX#13: Eks [Subincision Records, Körper / Leib] plus an insight into ‘The Lost Tape (EksM Vol.2)’

“Penile subincision is a form of body modification consisting of a urethrotomy, in which the [] urethra slit open lengthwise []. Often performed as a coming-of-age ritual, the procedure causes the subincized penis to be subject to another penis’ penetration, provided the latter were sufficiently small. In some Australian cultures, one traditional practice involved the penetration of an elder’s subincized penis by the unsubincized penis of a young boy who was usually under age 7. Some authors have theorized that this was the original purpose of subincision, making it an integrating part of a long tradition of ‘abuse’ ” [wikipedia / theaustralian.com]

Welcome back to the GUESTMIX appointment, we’re glad to share with you the 2nd mixed selection out in 2017 on our column. The artist who kindly provided us GUESTMIX#13 is Guido Marziale aka Eks, a Naples-based beatmaker, producer and label manager of his own imprint ‘Subincision Records’, on which he also released Eks’ latest effort called The Lost Tape (EksM Vol​.​2). The mixtape can be streamed via the mixcloud player here on top; the tracklist is instead reported at the very end of the article. Brace yourselves, since GUESTMIX#13 is one of the craziest pieces of music ever presented on this webzine.

Eks: Bandcamp / Website / KU Studio

Despite being already a member of Genital Warts, Radford Electronics and Kuna, we got to know Eks’ work back in early 2015 when Aaron Rumore‘s label Körper / Leib put out the ‘EksM’ C42 tape. Eks’ first proper album, EksM was closer to a coherent stream of beats than to the average random selecta to show off the producer’s skills. To put it in K/L way, “instead of focusing on one or two sonic goals, the songs – after all that’s what they properly are – disperse themselves in a large number of moods, yet their unity is the whole sound chamber, hazy and in the red“. As stated by Guido himself, oriental meditative sounds played a key role in conceiving its first full-length album, which, combined with his own peculiar beatmaking style much inspired by tape manipulation and cut-up techniques, resulted in an outstanding burst of obscure, crackling and hissing beat / sketches in which you’d happen to hear both hints of classic hip-hop style and musique concrete reminiscences.

‘The Lost Tape’ is the natural continuation of EksM (EksM Vol.2!), short of the fact the releasing label has changed from K/L to Subincision Records. Run by Eks, it is an independent outcome focused on weird music, hardcore and abstract hip hop, as well as noise, free-form music and experimental stuff. ‘Subincision is a tribal extreme practice; we are focused on extreme musical practices‘; the releases by Genital Warts, Sega Sega Sat, A Spirale and Cadaver Eyes (David Opp & Eran Sachs), the other acts/bands appearing on the label’s catalogue, provides a proper measure of these hardcore sounds’ impact on the user’s ears. Finally, Subincision Records is also a DIY books, comics, zines and records distro from all over Europe.

 

 

The tracks on ‘The Lost Tape’ have been recorded in different periods of Eks’ past activity, stored on a computer that was violated by some malicious software and later recovered – hence the title. The tape was initially meant to feature 24 tracks, yet only 15 was recovered from the cracked archive (which added up to five other dusted beats from elder releases); most of them were taken at KU Studio (Naples, Italy) using a Tascam microphone, a Roland SP 404, some piezo contact-mics, the aforementioned laptop, some pedals and lots of vinyls / cassette samples, and they have not been edited, mixed or even properly perfected. Yet, EksM Vol.2 works fine as the first EksM tape prosecution and as a standalone record too. None of the 20 tracks is longer than three minutes (except for ‘Balkh’) and most of their titles are composed by one-word only (and lots of ‘Untitled’ too) which are most definitely signs of the producer’s urgencies and spontaneity. Right here below you can find the embedded Bandcamp player to listen to the album in its entirety.

Nowadays, it’s quite rare to find artistically valuable hip hop outings coming from Italy, yet we feel Eks and the 2016-born Subincision Records – through their pretty unique iconoclastic blend of dark beats, odd sonic bursts, alien noises – will have their say in the present and future Italian underground scene. Come embrace an in-the-making tradition of ear-abuse.

Extra: Guido Marziale is also half of the brand new Cadaver Mike duo together with Stefano Costanzo we had the chance to see performing live at Circolo Dal Verme, Rome. For more infos about KU Studio, click here.

 

Artwork by ‘189’, graphic project by ‘Gab.’

 


GUESTMIX#13: TRACKLIST

  1. Beta Erko – Mekezidek
  2. John Wiese – Mystical Finland
  3. Kouhei Matsunaga ft. Sensational – Solid Fat
  4. Rashad Becker – Themes III
  5. Sec_ – Return
  6. Techno Animal ft Sonic Sun – DC-10
  7. Devilman – Noise Step
  8. Clipping – Guns Up
  9. ErikM – Massacre Melodies
  10. Wolf Eyes – Dead Hills 2
  11. Florian Hecker – Chimerization
  12. Beta Erko – The beck of the Net
  13. Sumach – Track 06
  14. Spectre ft. Sensational – Pillars Of Smoke
  15. Bill Orcutt – Onward Christian Soldiers
  16. C_C – To S_3
  17. Kouhei Matsunaga – 235
  18. Wolf Eyes – Wretched Hog
  19. Genital Warts – No Hop(e)

 

 


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PAYNOMINDTOUS is a non-profit organization registered in December 2018, operating since late 2015 as a webzine and media website. In early 2017, we started our own event series in Turin, IT focused on arts, experimental, and dancefloor-oriented music. We reject every clumsy invocation to “the Future” meant as the signifier for capitalistic “progress” and “innovation”, fully embracing the Present instead; we renounce any reckless and ultimately arbitrary division between “high” and “low”, respectable and not respectable, “mind” and “body”; we support and invite musicians, artists, and performers having diverse backgrounds and expressing themselves via variegated artistic practices.